HOUSTON -- After watching his unit give up four touchdowns and a school-record 458 rushing yards on Saturday afternoon against Rice, Texas defensive coordinator Bobby Jack Wright emerged from the Longhorn locker room with a smile on his face.
Perhaps that's not the reaction one would expect from the leader of a group that was exploited and outmuscled for the majority of the day. But for Wright, timing is everything -- and on Saturday, the Texas defense came through just in time.
Although they allowed the Owls to score on five of their first seven possessions, the Horns made use of a huge turnover and a gutsy last-minute stand to shut out Rice in the fourth quarter, holding on for a 38-31 triumph.
"Yeah, we gave up yards," Wright said. "But you have to look at the big picture and say that we made the big plays when we needed them."
But throughout most of the contest, Texas defenders were the victims, rather than the creators, of big plays. Even though the Horns had two weeks to prepare for it, Rice's unique triple option offense caused headaches galore for Texas.
Quarterback Chad Nelson engineered repeated clock-gobbling drives all afternoon, and wound up with 130 yards rushing for the game. "A"-back Michael Perry did most of the damage, however, rushing for 211 yards, including a 66-yard touchdown scamper that put the Owls ahead 31-21 late in the third quarter.
"Their offense is one that is very difficult to stop, unless you just completely overpower them," head coach John Mackovic said. "And not many teams will overpower them."
And players admitted that the inability of the defense to keep Rice off the scoreboard was particularly discouraging, considering that teammate Ricky Williams was in the midst of a record 253-yard, five-touchdown performance of his own.
"You feel like you're letting down the team, and you don't ever want to let down the team," linebacker Dwight Kirkpatrick said of the defense's mindset during the game. "If we could have cut down on our mistakes, the game might not have been as close, but we stepped it up and got out of here with a victory."
That process of "stepping it up" began in the opening moments of the final period, when Perry took a pitch on the option and dashed down the right sideline, deep into Texas territory. Cornerback Tony Holmes, seeing that his receiver had cracked back on the safety, delivered a hit on Perry that jarred the ball loose, and Texas' Joe Walker recovered the fumble on the Texas 22.
But while at least four different players, both Horns and Owls, called Holmes' play a "turning point," the Texas defense was not off the hook quite yet. After Williams added his fourth touchdown, the Horns still trailed by four points and were in dire need of another defensive stop. Wright's unit obliged, as a big tackle by safety Donald McCowen and a forced incompletion forced Rice to punt.
McCowen, who recorded 10 tackles, was specifically one of the main reasons for the defense's late improvement. The Texas coaching staff made a fourth-quarter adjustment that moved McCowen from the center of the field to the pitch man, reducing the effectiveness of the option.
"Our defense hung tough the entire day even though we gave up some big plays," Mackovic said. "I'm extremely proud of the way they played and the heart they showed."
The defense's final test came on the game's final drive, after the Horns had added a Phil Dawson field goal to increase their lead to seven points. Once again, Nelson led a methodical Owl drive, leading Rice from its own 20 into scoring position during the waning minutes.
On that drive, Texas' Chris Akins went down with torn cartilage in his knee, joining fellow defensive tackle Casey Hampton (ACL injury) on the sidelines. Rice continued to move the ball after that, eventually positioning itself at the Texas 12 with eight seconds to play.
But Brandon Nava led a strong pass rush on the final two plays, forcing Nelson to throw a pair of incompletions that sealed the Texas victory.
"After they held us to a field goal, we knew it would come down to the last drive," Wright said. "We were just fortunate to hold on to the win."
And with the experience of surviving such a pressure-packed set of circumstances, Kirkpatrick said that he believes the defense is on the right track, despite all of the yards allowed.
"I think it was a test of our character and what kind of team we had out there," Kirkpatrick said. "We showed we could hang tough."
And as for the Horns' defensive strategy in the game's closing seconds?
"You know, I don't even remember," said defensive end Gray Mosier. "I was so damn tired, I was just happy that they didn't catch the ball."
And after witnessing the tension-filled display that Texas and Rice produced on Saturday, Mosier's words probably ring true for a few thousand fans as well.
Jeff McDonald
Daily Texan Staff
HOUSTON -- For decades, historians and football coaches have engaged in the game of "What if?"
What if a Yankee messenger had not stumbled upon a misplaced copy of battle plans for Lee's Maryland campaign during the early stages of the Civil War?
What if Confederate Gen. Stonewall Jackson had not been accidentally shot and killed by his own troops in battle?
And what if Texas special teamer Hodges Mitchell had not pounced on Wane McGarity's fumble in the second quarter of UT's 38-31 victory at Rice last Saturday?
All too often, football games are decided and history is made by presumably insignificant occurrences; outcomes are swung by happenings that at the time seem inconsequential.
To put it another way, it's the little things that kill.
Were it not for Mitchell's fumble recovery less than a minute into the second period Saturday, the Horns' season, like the Old South, might have disintegrated on the steamy turf of Rice Stadium.
McGarity's flub came on a kickoff return after Rice's second unanswered touchdown of the afternoon, and would have given the Owls the ball at Texas' 28.
Another score, and the home team could have been poised to run away with its third straight win and send the Longhorns to their second consecutive humiliating defeat.
But Mitchell's right-place-at-the-right-time maneuver allowed Texas to retain possession, and the Horns then marched 70 yards on six plays to get on the scoreboard and climb back into the ballgame.
"That was a huge play in the game. That could have really hurt us," said senior kicker Phil Dawson. "But you know, the little things are starting to turn our way."
A look at other favorable bounces that kept Houston from becoming the Texas football version of Appomattox Courthouse on Saturday:
* With UT driving for the fourth-quarter field goal that would ultimately seal the game, halfback Ricky Williams lost control of the ball while heading toward the sideline inside the Owls' 10. The ball hit the turf and was swarmed by a slew of Rice defenders, sucking the air out of the sizable Texas contingent of fans.
But officials ruled -- correctly, it turns out -- that Williams had already been forced out of bounds before fumbling, and four plays later a Dawson chip shot gave the Horns a seven-point lead.
"They were hitting pretty hard there at the end," Williams said. "But I knew I was out of bounds, so I wasn't worried about it."
* An 11-yard Chad Nelson TD run gave Rice a 10-point lead early in the third quarter, and put Texas in a must-score situation. On first down from its own 43, UT quarterback James Brown was pressured by nose guard Judd Smith, but Texas center Ryan Fiebiger blatantly held Smith to free up Brown and allow him to complete a pass to David Aaron and keep the drive from crumbling.
No foul was called, and the Horns eventually scored on a Williams touchdown jaunt.
"I heard the Rice fans booing pretty loudly, so I hope I can make it out of here alive," Fiebiger said. "I did get away with one, though."
* Punter Mark Schultis' Oscar-caliber acting job in the fourth quarter kept another big drive alive for Texas. On a fourth-and-nine kick near midfield, Schultis was brushed by Rice's Andy Clifton, and flopped to the Astroturf. Clifton was flagged 15 yards for roughing the punter, instead of drawing the milder 5-yard penalty for running into the kicker.
The referee's decision gave Texas an automatic first down at the Rice 31, and just over a minute later, Williams plunged across the goal line from five yards out to spot UT its first lead of the contest, which it would never relinquish.
"[Clifton] was blocked into that. I feel the ref made a bad call, but you can't blame it on the refs," Nelson said.
"They messed up," Texas linebacker Dusty Renfro said,"and we just capitalized on their mistake."
* After Texas had come back to tie the game midway through the second quarter, the Owls drove into UT territory and faced a first-and-10 at the Longhorns' 31.
Rice surprised Texas with a pass play, and running back Michael Perry slipped easily behind the secondary. But UT's Dwight Kirkpatrick and Chris Akins tag-teamed on a pass rush, knocking quarterback Nelson backward.
The contact caused Nelson's throw to the wide-open Perry to fall eight yards short of its intended target, saving a sure six points. The Owls could muster only a field goal on that possession, something that turned up big down the stretch.
"It just so happened that coach [Bobby Jack] Wright made a good call on that one," Kirkpatrick said.
* Down by a touchdown with under a minute to play, the Owls moved into Texas' red zone and were threatening to win or tie with a TD and conversion.
With eight ticks on the clock, Nelson dropped back to pass and lofted a ball toward Jason Blackwell in the corner of the end zone. Blackwell hauled in the pass over cornerback Tony Holmes, but with his feet touching the sideline.
The pass was ruled incomplete, and Nelson's next pass from scrimmage also soared out of the end zone to preserve the Texas win.
"I just overthrew the receiver," Nelson said.
"That was a close one," Wright said.
With that, Wright could have summarized the entire game itself, which may have saved Texas' season.
The so-called little things ultimately added up to equal a huge bounce-back victory for the Longhorns Saturday, giving them a little bit of momentum heading into conference play.
A loss would have sent the team stumbling into the heart of its schedule on a losing streak. Recovery would have been difficult, if not impossible.
"We knew today would be the turning point in our season, one way or another," Dawson said. "Fortunately enough, we won the game."
HOUSTON -- For the most part, Texas free safety Donald McCowen is almost positive that the fans attending Owls games are nice people.
But even Miss Manners would get her feathers ruffled when her team is down by seven with less than a minute to play.
"They were talking bad, and cussing coach Mackovic. They were doing it all," McCowen said of the quirky atmosphere that is Rice Stadium. "I don't know because I'm not on the visiting side, but I'm sure our fans never cuss the visiting team like that."
That's probably because they're too busy cussing Texas, a team that gave up 478 yards to Rice in a seesaw battle that UT only won because it held off a desperation heave into the end zone as time expired to preserve a 38-31 win before 53,811 fans on Saturday.
Rice (2-2) ran the Spread Option offense to near perfection against the Longhorns (2-1) as running back Michael Perry racked up 211 yards and two touchdowns and quarterback Chad Nelson also found enough room in UT's porous defense for 128 rushing yards.
But luckily for the Longhorns, they had a back that[who] had a pretty good day too. Halfback Ricky Williams broke out of a mini-slump to romp for a career-best 249 yards and a school and Big 12 Conference record five touchdowns.
Williams was the deciding difference between victory and defeat for the Longhorns as they took the first step to wiping the bitter aftertaste away from a UCLA loss that has been since dubbed "Rout 66." The junior's touchdown runs of 9, 48, 4, 25 and 15 yards also propelled Williams into fourth place on UT's all-time career rushing touchdown list.
"I just knew that I had to pick up my game to help us win," Williams said. "I was determined, really determined."
Rice was also determined as the Owls took a seemingly commanding 31-21 lead off of running back Michael Perry's 66-yard touchdown run straight into the heart of the Texas defense with 3:46 to play in the third.
But Texas quarterback James Brown, who returned to action after missing the UCLA game with an injured ankle, promptly hit wide receiver Jamel Thompson on the next possession for a 40-yard completion to the Owls' 25.
Williams rolled left for a 25-yard touchdown to cap the two-play, whipcracking drive that was the beginning of the end for Rice. The Owls shuffled down to the Texas 34 keyed by a 16-yard quarterback keeper by Nelson and fullback dives by Benji Wood for gains of six, seven and four yards.
But on third-and-4, Perry took a pitch on the right side and was met by UT cornerback Tony Holmes, who forced a crucial fumble that was recovered by freshman Joe Walker. Texas moved to midfield before Rice roughed UT punter Mark Schultis on fourth-and-9. Williams moved the offense down the field himself before punching in a 15-yard run with 10:39 to play to give UT a 35-31 lead.
A 23-yard field goal by UT's Phil Dawson gave the Longhorns the seven-point advantage, but Rice still had one last gasp.
"That made it a little tighter than we wanted. If we'd had punched that in, then it would have been an easier last five minutes to go," Texas head coach John Mackovic said of a drive that saw Williams drop a sure-fire touchdown pass from seven yards out.
The Owls had penetrated UT's defense for 176 rushing yards by halftime while attempting two passes. McCowen said that a halftime defensive adjustment of shifting over to the middle of the field was critical as Rice's Nelson was then unable to read which side the offense should run to.
"Before the coaches came in, we had talked about what needed to be done," UT defensive end Gray Mosier said. "We knew their calls and when he [Nelson] was checking, we knew which way he was going. It was just a matter of telling those defensive backs what the call was so they could do their job."
However, the move wasn't executed perfectly, as Rice accumulated 276 rushing yards in the second half en route to what would have been a game-tying touchdown with little time remaining.
Nelson used a quarterback draw to gain 16 yards down to Texas' 27-yard line. Wood and Nelson took turns rushing as Rice prefers to throw the ball only in dire emergencies, but the option attack moved the Owls to Texas' 12.
"We started talking that this was all about heart," Mosier said. "We were saying that this is what we want and this is what we need to achieve, and nobody is leaving here until we do."
Nelson fired a pass to wide receiver Jason Blackwell that was caught out of bounds, then he overthrew Drew Cooper in the right corner of the end zone as time expired. The victory was a huge sigh of relief for Texas fans and another bullet dodged.
"Since we won this game, everyone realized that we can win," Brown, who finished 12 for 19 for 148 yards and one interception, said. "I don't know if we'll ever get [UCLA] out of our mind after losing at home. The expectations were so high as a team. But hopefully, we can carry this over to our next game."
The win did boost Texas' confidence as the season now turns to Big 12 play with the conference opener against Oklahoma State in Stillwater, Okla., this Saturday. But the Rice win only magnified the fact that the Longhorns will need to vastly improve their tackling and pursuit if they wish to down the 4-0 Cowboys.
"We were talking before the game about how there were little fires simmering around," Dawson said. "If we had lost this one, it would have turned into a huge bonfire that would have ruined the rest of the year. I'm not saying this saves the year, but it's obviously a step in the right direction."
Rice boasts about the newly installed Astroturf at the school's home stadium. Now, the surface has three key injuries to brag about as well.
Texas suffered a major setback Saturday when three starters suffered knee injuries in UT's 38-31 victory over the Owls.
Flanker Wane McGarity and defensive tackle Casey Hampton left the game with assorted damage to their ACL's while defensive tackle Chris Akins also had to be carted off the field. All three will miss an undetermined amount of time.
"Losing two of our starting defensive tackles and a top wide receiver- the one with the most experience - is a little tough to take," Texas head coach John Mackovic said during his Sunday media teleconference.
McGarity suffered his injury on a kickoff return when he was spilled by Rice's Adrian Sadler. Hampton left the game toward the end of the first half, and Akins had to be carted off the field just prior to the game's finish.
Mackovic said that Akins has already undergone a bone scan and a magnetic resonance imaging test that discovered torn cartilage. Akins will have surgery to repair the tear, but it is still unclear if the senior from Paris will return to game action.
McGarity and Hampton will both have MRIs early this week to determine the severity of their injuries, and Mackovic said their conditions are still up in the air as well. But he also stressed that the outlook is dim.
"We used to feel that the turf wasn't too much of an enemy, but certainly that wasn't the case Saturday," Mackovic said.